Facing the Future

13/10/2023

This week on we looked at how Congress avoided a government shutdown on September 30 and whether they’ll be able to do it again before November 17 when the short-term deal they reached comes to an end. And beyond that, there is still the overriding question of when and how they will reach agreement on spending levels for full fiscal 2024 appropriation bills. In our final segment, we looked at the latest economic numbers and what they portend for the federal budget.

This week on Facing the Future we looked at how Congress avoided a government shutdown on September 30 and whether they’ll be able to do it again before November 17 when the short-term deal they reached comes to an end. And beyond that, there is still the overriding question of when and how they w...

22/09/2023

: If Congress fails to agree on funding levels by October 1st, many government offices will need to close their doors. We discussed the state of play with , a former senior advisor to Senator Mitch McConnell.

This week on Facing the Future, we considered the possibility of a government shutdown. If Congress fails to agree on funding levels for the next fiscal year, which begins on October 1st, many government offices will need to close their doors. With less than two weeks to go, negotiators seem far apa...

14/09/2023

: We look at some key questions about the federal budget that voters should ask candidates in the 2024 election cycle. Voters should expect candidates to explain how they intend to deal with the huge challenges that lie ahead. https://www.concordcoalition.org/facing-the-future-archive/questions-the-candidates-need-to-answer/

31/08/2023

: New Hampshire State Budget Challenges Mirror Those in Washington

This week on Facing the Future, we catch up with Phill Sletten, research director of the New Hampshire Fiscal Policy Institute, a Concord based nonpartisan state budget think tank. Phil walks us throu

30/08/2023

Last week on - Ben Ritz: Recent US Credit Rating Downgrade Should Be A Wakeup Call

This week on Facing the Future, we check in once again with Ben Ritz, who directs the Center for Funding America’s Future at the Progressive Policy Institute. Ben has written a number of new pieces recently including one entitled: “Why The Fitch Downgrade Should Be a Wakeup Call to Washington, E...

19/07/2023

This week on , we get an update from Concord Coalition policy director Tori Gorman and chief economist Steve Robinson on the latest economic news plus the looming Congressional battle over appropriations bills for the next fiscal year. No agreement by the end of the current fiscal year on September 30th could force a partial government shutdown. Plus, we visit New Hampshire Boys State where a group of high school students were engaged in serious policy debates over how to reduce the federal deficit over the next 10 years as they took on the Principles and Priorities budget exercise.

This week on Facing the Future, we get an update from Concord Coalition policy director Tori Gorman and chief economist Steve Robinson on the latest economic news plus the looming Congressional battle

13/07/2023

This week on : "Graying Is Paying: Our Aging Population's Impact On The Budget And The Economy"

This week on Facing the Future, we talk to Richard Jackson, President of the Global Aging Institute about the combined effects of declining fertility rates, longer life expectancy and the baby boomers entering retirement en masse on our federal budget and our economy. It means more spending on Medic...

15/06/2023

This week on , we looked at (and tried to make sense of) the mixed bag of economic signals from the latest figures on employment, consumer prices, and the strategy employed by the Federal Reserve on interest rates, all of which made news in the last week. To do this, we were joined by Robert Carroll, co-director of the Ernst & Young U.S. National Tax Quantitative Economics and Statistics Group (QUEST). Carroll also served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Tax Analysis for the U.S. Treasury Department.

This week on Facing the Future, we looked at (and tried to make sense of) the mixed bag of economic signals from the latest figures on employment, consumer prices, and the strategy employed by the Federal Reserve on interest rates, all of which made news in the last week. To do this, we were joined....

09/06/2023

This week on , we hear from Diane Lim who provides highlights from a recent Congressional Report on how the federal government can invest in robust economic growth over this decade. The bottom line? Invest in young people.

This week on Facing the Future, we hear from Diane Lim – the “Economist Mom” – who gives us some very interesting highlights from a recent Congressional Report she helped put together looking at how the federal government can invest in robust economic growth over the next decade or so. The b...

31/05/2023

What are border carbon adjustments? Here about the concept and why the idea is gaining bipartisan support in from Greg Bertelsen of the bipartisan Climate Leadership Council on a recent episode of Facing the Future

Greg Bertelsen, CEO of the bipartisan Climate Leadership Council, explains the concept of Border Carbon Adjustments

17/05/2023

This week on Facing the Future, we turn to the Concord Coalition's veterans of Congress - policy director Tori Gorman and chief economist Steve Robinson - for up to the minute analysis on negotiations between President Biden and Congressional leaders over extending or suspending the nation's debt limit. The federal government may have only a few days or the next week to be able to pay all of its bills in full and on time before a default occurs if a deal cannot be reached. If no deal is reached, the consequences on our economy could be serious and far reaching.

This week on Facing the Future, we turn to the Concord Coalition's veterans of Congress - policy director Tori Gorman and chief economist Steve Robinson - for up to the minute analysis on negotiation

04/05/2023

: President Biden proposes spending $842 billion for the Pentagon in his proposed FY2024 budget - $69 billion higher than the Pentagon’s request last year. Joining us to interpret our defense spending was Dr. Gordon Adams of School of International Service, AU

This week on Facing the Future, we took a deep dive into defense spending, the largest portion of discretionary spending (i.e., annual appropriations)in the federal budget: President Biden proposes spending $842 billion for the Pentagon in his proposed fiscal year 2024 budget, which is $69 billion h...

26/04/2023

This week on Facing the Future, Concord Coalition policy director Tori Gorman and chief economist Steve Robinson - both veterans of Capitol Hill - dissect the particulars of Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy's proposal to raise the debt limit in exchange for about $4.5 Trillion in deficit reduction. A laudable goal, but should it be the start of a budget negotiation rather than a set of conditions for raising the debt limit to avoid a government default this summer?

We also speak to Professor Mike Aguilar of the University of North Carolina about the collegiate Fiscal Challenge competition, which he founded and runs.

This week on Facing the Future, Concord Coalition policy director Tori Gorman and chief economist Steve Robinson - both veterans of Capitol Hill - dissect the particulars of Republican House Speaker K

20/04/2023

was in Washington DC this week for the national finals of the annual “Fiscal Challenge” competition among college students all over the country. The students put forward some thorough and well-researched plans to reduce the national debt as a share of the American economy over the next 30 years. Concord Coalition Communications Director Av Harris spoke in detail with the college teams about their proposals to raise revenue, reduce federal spending, and grow the economy. He also spoke with professor Sita Slavov of George Mason University’s Schar School of Public Policy, who evaluated and scored these plans as one of the fiscal challenge judges.

Facing the Future was in Washington DC this week for the national finals of the annual “Fiscal Challenge” competition among college students all over the country. The students put forward some thorough and well-researched plans to reduce the national debt as a share of the American economy over ...

14/04/2023

This week on , we hear from two experts on the federal budget process and the search for more revenue which many fiscal policy experts believe we are going to need - along with spending cuts - if we expect to truly address the historic imbalance between what the government spends and what it takes in.

Our guests are Howard Gleckman of the Brookings Tax Policy Center, and Tom Kahn, Faculty Fellow at the Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies (American University) at American University who for 20 years was staff director for Democrats on the House Budget Committee.

This week on Facing the Future, we hear from two experts on the federal budget process and the search for more revenue which mamy fiscal policy experts believe we are going to need - along with spendi

29/03/2023

This week on , we travel to Iowa to get some perspectives on the long-term fiscal and economic challenges facing the United States. We are joined by a panel of experts from the Tippie College of Business, University of Iowa to look at short and long-term economic trends and how to bring down the cost of healthcare. They were joined by Concord Coalition chief economist Steve Robinson who takes a look at the current debt limit fight in Congress, and what is at stake for our economy. Plus, how can we avoid the Social Security Trust Fund going insolvent which could mean major benefit cuts for seniors.

This week on facing the future, we travel to Iowa to get some perspectives on the long-term fiscal and economic challenges facing the United States. We are joined by a panel of experts from the Univer

22/03/2023

This week on , we hear excerpts from a recent panel discussion focusing on the economic and federal budget impact of climate change. The White House estimates that environmental damage may cost taxpayers up to $130 billion every year, and may cut our economic output by as much as 10% by the end of the century.

The panel discussion was sponsored by the Concord Coalition, the League of Conservation Voters, and the Rudman Center for Justice, Leadership, and Public Service at the University of New Hampshire Franklin Pierce School of Law.

This week on Facing the Future, we hear excerpts from a recent panel discussion focusing on the economic and federal budget impact of climate change. The White House estimates that environmental damag

16/03/2023

This week on , we have an in-house panel of Concord Coalition experts - policy director Tori Gorman and chief economist Steve Robinson - evaluate the validity and credibility of President Biden's recently released Fiscal Year 2024 federal budget plan. The President did propose some changes to Medicare and a significant amount of new revenue, but his plan comes up short in other areas. We take a look at the budget through a set of criteria we developed and assign some color codes - green, yellow and red - to tell us whether the President's budget meets the mark.

This week on Facing the Future, we have an in-house panel of Concord Coalition experts - policy director Tori Gorman and chief economist Steve Robinson - evaluate the validity and credibility of Presi

10/03/2023

This week on , we hear from Andrew Biggs, Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. In a recent Op-Ed for the Washington Post entitled "Biden Once Cut Social Security. Now, He Can Save It" Biggs argues that both Republicans and Democrats need to stop making empty promises not to touch Social Security retiree benefits if they're unwilling to pay higher payroll taxes to fund them. And we also hear from Concord Coalition chief economist Steve Robinson on how the federal government might still be able to cut Social Security checks even when it hits the debt limit and can't borrow any more money.

This week on Facing the Future, we hear from Andrew Biggs, Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. In a recent Op-Ed for the Washington Post entitled "Biden Once Cut Social Security. Now,

03/03/2023

This week on , we get further analysis of the latest 10-year budget and economic outlook recently released by the Congressional Budget Office from Jeff Holland of the Peterson Foundation, who used to run the CBO projection unit. Plus, we hear from Josh Gordon of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget for a closer look at how the runaway train that is healthcare costs is having a major impact on the federal budget over the next 10 years. Gordon also describes some big problems with the popular Medicare Advantage program.

This week on Facing the Future, we get further analysis of the latest 10-year budget and economic outlook recently released by the Congressional Budget Office from Jeff Holland of the Peterson Foundat

02/03/2023

Looking to try a different podcast with the same great fiscal analysis? Bob Bixby joined America Trends Podcast this week to discuss the federal debt, the debt ceiling, and the political will to make change in Congress.

Find the podcast linked below and on all your podcast listening networks.

Some Congressional leaders say that all we have to do to get control of our raging national debt is to cut out waste, fraud and abuse. Scour the voluminous federal budget and you will not find line items with those designations. Were it so easy. Mind you we're over $31 trillion in the hole now and a...

23/02/2023

This week on Facing the Future, we are joined one more time by Dr. Philip Swagel, an economist who is Director of the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. The CBO has just released its newest 10 year federal budget and economic outlook. The picture it paints is quite concerning. Deficits are expected to climb to an average of more than $2 trillion per year, and for the first time ever the Social Security trust fund are predicted to go insolvent within that 10-year window.

If Congress does not act to shore up the program, beneficiaries could be facing cuts of more than 20%.

This week on Facing the Future, we are joined one more time by Dr. Philip Swagel, an economist who is Director of the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. The CBO has just released its newest 10 y

16/02/2023

This week on , we check in with Ben Ritz - director of the Center for Funding America's Future with the Progressive Policy Institute. Ben has written a number of recent works including one exploring what President Biden's call in the State of the Union Address to 'stand up for seniors' means for Social Security and Medicare when their trust funds are on track to run out of money in the next few years. And, how to move forward meaningful, bipartisan fiscal policy in a divided Congress.

This week on Facing the Future, we check in with Ben Ritz - director of the Center for Funding America's Future with the Progressive Policy Institute. Ben has written a number of recent works includin

10/02/2023

This week on , we check back in with International Security and Russian/Eurasian affairs professor Adam Stulberg of the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs at Georgia Tech University on the one year anniversary of Russia's brutal invasion of Ukraine. Stulberg says the war has brought many surprises and poses some complicated questions we need to think about going forward. We'll also get some instant analysis of President Biden's State of the Union Address, specifically what was said (and not said) about major forces impacting the federal budget.

This week on Facing the Future, we check back in with International Security and Russian/Eurasian affairs professor Adam Stulberg of the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs at Georgia Tech Univer

03/02/2023

This week on , we talk to Theresa Cardinal Brown, managing director of immigration and cross-border policy at the Bipartisan Policy Center about whether the humanitarian and security crisis along the US-Mexican border will be enough to enact some fixes to our broken immigration system. Even with Republicans now controlling the House in a divided Congress, bipartisan talks are underway. Plus, we'll get analysis on the Biden administration's latest move on student loans, which may turn the federal program into grants for college.

This week on Facing the Future, we talk to Theresa Cardinal Brown, managing director of immigration and cross-border policy at the Bipartisan Policy Center about whether the humanitarian and security

26/01/2023

Last week on Alex Po***ck proposed an option for a hot button topic from 2022: student loan reforms

26/01/2023

This week on Facing the Future, we get the long term perspective on the federal budget and our national debt from Kent Smetters, faculty director of the well-respected Penn Wharton Budget Model. The Budget Model looks at long term trends impacting the federal budget such as projected revenues and expenditures, plus demographics that are already starting to have an enormous impact as the Baby Boomers retire. Dr. Smetters sees our national debt growing higher and faster than ever, and a less productive economy in the future.

This week on Facing the Future, we get the long term perspective on the federal budget and our national debt from Kent Smetters, faculty director of the well-respected Penn Wharton Budget Model. The B

20/01/2023

This week on Facing the Future, we hear from two authors - Howard Adler and Alex Po***ck - who have written a new book called 'Surprised Again: The COVID Crisis and the New Market Bubble'. The book explores how for the 2nd time in our young century, the federal government's response to an economic crisis had some unintended consequences that we are all paying for. This time, it was the multi-trillion dollar COVID relief packages in two administrations that have significantly contributed to the higher inflation we are all feeling.

This week on Facing the Future, we hear from two authors - Howard Adler and Alex Po***ck - who have written a new book called 'Surprised Again: The COVID Crisis and the New Market Bubble'. The book ex

07/01/2023

This week on , we speak with University of New Hampshire Political Science Professor Dante Scala about changes to the Democratic Presidential Primary calendar for 2024 that would have the Granite State lose its first-in-the-nation status. Listen here:

This week on Facing the Future, we speak with University of New Hampshire Political Science Professor Dante Scala about changes the national Democratic party wants to make to its Presidential Primary

29/12/2022

This week on Facing the Future, we listen to the best of our program for 2022. This is a year that saw our national debt top $30 Trillion, surging inflation like we haven't seen since the early 1980s, and the largest ground war in Europe since WWII. And all of this with an economy still recovering from the disruptions of the worst pandemic in 100 years.

We'll hear from all sorts of economists and federal policy excerpts including an advisor to four US Presidents - all of whom appeared on Facing the Future this past year.

This week on Facing the Future, we listen to the best of our program for 2022. This is a year that saw our national debt top $30 Trillion, surging inflation like we haven't seen since the early 1980s,

22/12/2022

This week on , we get the entire Concord Coalition staff on the program to take stock of everything that happened in 2022 that impacted the federal budget and the economy. It was a doozy of a year, with lingering pandemic-related supply chain disruptions and a ground war in Europe pushing inflation up to levels we haven't seen in 40 years. The Fed's moves to raise interest rates are making the national debt much more expensive for Congress to carry. We'll review it all plus examine the Santa Claus theory of Congressional budgeting.

This week on Facing the Future, we get the entire Concord Coalition staff on the program to take stock of everything that happened in 2022 that impacted the federal budget and the economy. It was a do

07/12/2022

This week on , we hear from Brookings Institution Senior Fellow Molly Reynolds who specializes in researching Congress. She says the failure of Congress to do the most basic things like pass an annual budget due to partisan polarization and dysfunction weakens the institution and dilutes its constitutionally protected role of appropriating government funds. At the same time, this emboldens Presidents to take unilateral executive actions such as forgiving student loans that cost taxpayers hundreds of billions of dollars.

This week on Facing the Future, we hear from Brookings Institution Senior Fellow Molly Reynolds who specializes in researching Congress. She says the failure of Congress to do the most basic things li

01/12/2022

This week on , excerpts from a special event at the National Press Club in Washington DC celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Concord Coalition's founding. An all-star panel of Concord Coalition alumni featuring Ben Ritz of the Progressive Policy Institute, Maya MacGuineas of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, Congressional Economist 'Mom' Diane Lim, and Brian Keane of Smart Power look at the biggest challenges to face the US economy and federal budget such as: how to generate more revenue, saving Social Security and Medicare, climate change, immigration reform, and more.

This week on Facing the Future, excerpts from a special event at the National Press Club in Washington DC celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Concord Coalition's founding. An all-star panel of Con

16/11/2022

This week on , we hear once again from internationally recognized expert on infectious disease and epidemiology Dr. Michael Osterholm of the University of Minnesota School of Public Health. Osterholm and his colleagues who advised the Biden Administration on the COVID-19 pandemic recently wrote an Op-Ed in the New York Times. They make the case that we must learn from our experience and we have so much work to do to invest in our health care and disease surveillance infrastructure. If we don't, we will be woefully under-prepared for the next pandemic and related economic crisis. Plus, we take a look at the latest inflation numbers.

This week on Facing the Future, we hear once again from internationally recognized expert on infectious disease and epidemiology Dr. Michael Osterholm of the University of Minnesota. Osterholm and his

09/11/2022

This week on , we try to read the tea leaves from an extraordinarily close midterm election result in 2022. It could have a profound impact on what Congress decides to do about funding the government and raising the debt ceiling, two crucial priorities that lawmakers were putting off until after Election Day. We are joined by American University Professor and former Democratic House Budget Committee staff director Tom Kahn, and financial investment advisor Pete Davis who used to staff the Senate Republican Budget Committee.

This week on Facing the Future, we try to read the tea leaves from an extraordinarily close midterm election result in 2022. It could have a profound impact on what Congress decides to do about fundin

02/11/2022

This week on , Concord Coalition Policy Director Tori Gorman fills in as host and speaks with Economist Claudia Sahm who has worked at both the Federal Reserve and the White House. Sahm questions whether the Fed is taking the right approach to fighting inflation by raising interest rates so rapidly. The originator of the 'Sahm rule' in economic forecasting says there's a risk Fed's actions might needlessly cause a global recession and put millions of people out of work in the US and abroad.

This week on Facing the Future, Concord Coalition Policy Director Tori Gorman fills in as host and speaks with Economist Claudia Sahm who has worked at both the Federal Reserve and the White House. Sa

26/10/2022

This week on , we're on the road in Austin Texas for a panel discussion on the long-term economic outlook for the United States.

We hear from University of Texas economist and public policy professor James K. Galbraith, who says we need to get used to America not dominating global economic and military matters, and Will Marshall, founder and president of the Progressive Policy Institute, who says big tech are the innovators of our time and we need to focus more investment on non-college education and training for the jobs of the future.

This week on Facing the Future, we're on the road in Austin Texas for a panel discussion on the long-term economic outlook for the United States. We hear from University of Texas economist and public

19/10/2022

This week on , we speak to Concord Coalition policy director Tori Gorman and chief economist Steve Robinson about the prospects for an economic recession in 2023 as the Fed raises interest rates to bring down inflation. Prices remain stubbornly high. We also hear from Nick Troiano, Executive Director of Unite America, about that organization's state-by-state effort to open up party primaries to all eligible voters in the hopes that it will get us a less ideologically polarized Congress.

This week on Facing the Future, we speak to Concord Coalition policy director Tori Gorman and chief economist Steve Robinson about the prospects for an economic recession in 2023 as the Fed raises int

13/10/2022

This week on , we check in with Bill Hoagland, Senior Vice President of the Washington DC based Bipartisan Policy Center for a situational awareness update on the growing national debt. It just passed the $31 Trillion mark and with interest rates going up to combat inflation, that debt has become much more expensive to carry. Plus, we'll look at a complicated Social Security Proposal that's somewhat popular but a bad idea.

This Week on Facing the Future, we check in with Bill Hoagland, Senior Vice President of the Washington DC based Bipartisan Policy Center for a situational awareness update on the growing national deb

05/10/2022

This week on , we hear from Gordon Gray, Director of Fiscal Policy at American Action Forum. He proposed a plan that could add 900,000 new Americans to the labor force, reduce the immigration backlog, and potentially add $100 billion in economic output. Hear about his plan here:

This week on Facing the Future, we hear from Gordon Gray, Director of Fiscal Policy at the American Action Forum. He has written a new paper with a proposal that could add another 900,000 new American